COLOGNE, Germany – German actor Ulrich Tukur, the star of The White Ribbon, The Lives of Others and John Rabe will play the lead role of grumpy cat owner Pettersson in the life-action adaptation of best-selling Swedish children’s books Pettersson & Findus.

Ali Samadi Ahadi (The Green Wave) will direct for producers Tradewind with principle photography set to start next year. Sven Nordqvist’s children’s franchise has already been turned into a successful cartoon and a series of animated features.